Feeling Very Patiotic

I'm having difficulty putting down how today made me feel.  The last week has been rather emotional as far as feelings for my country go, having seen the places where we started and where we fought the British and each other.   It culminated this morning with a visit to the National Mall. I felt a fierce pride in all we have gone through to get where we are today. We have much to be proud of. 


I left Cash at the trailer with a girl coming in every 3 hours to walk him.  I drove to the Metro subway station, and after help from several kind people, emerged in the Capitol.  Not too many people there at first, but by noon it was jammed with people from all over the world.  I heard many different languages being spoken. 

An etching from the Vietnam Wall

Everything was even bigger and grander than I had expected. Which meant it was a lot of walking to see it all.   And I did see a lot of it.  The white house, the capitol building (the reflecting pool is dry), the Washington monument (the reflecting pool is being redone), the Lincoln monument, the WWII memorial, the Korean war memorial and the Vietnam memorial. That one meant a lot since I had grown up during that time and it was a part of my personal history.

The Smithsonian Natural History Museum

I went into a couple of the Smithsonian museums.  It would take many days to do them all.  The most impressive thing I saw was the original flag that inspired the Star Spangled Banner.  Almost brings tears to the eyes.  And Julia Child's kitchen was a treat. 

After all the bad weather yesterday, it was a beautiful, warm, sunny day.  People were out all over, playing various outdoor games, jogging, biking and, of course, walking.  A very American day.